Spectator, to the team of journalism - SIES ASCN

S E C T I O N N A M E

2 U N I V E R S A L M A G A Z I N E M A R C H 2 0 11

Anita Choudhary

ADVERTISEMENTKaushik sodhi

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTSpectator, to the team of journalism

students is a highly inspired magazine. Over the years, the inspiration and continuity of

this yearly magazine has directly or indirectly been coming from a lot of sources.

We would like to thank our honorable Principal, Dr. Milind Vaidya for the great

opportunity given to us and having faith in our team to complete the task. Prof.

Abhishek Dandekar, for his great support and encouragement throughout the

semester. Last but not the least, we’d like to thank Prof. Aparna Naik for her constant guidance and motivation throughout the

project.

EDITORSJessica Goel

Shefali Onawale

LAYOUT AND DESIGN

Eshaan Patil

WRITERSAjay Gholap

Nuzhat Azmi

Amrita Bhute

Simran Pol

Shruthi Shreekumar

Shefali Shinde

Janet D’Souza

Janani Ganesh

Prealene Khera

Rajrshi Shukla

Aditi Nair

Krutika Vaishya

Varsha Mehta

Leena Pandey

Rasika Deshpande

THE SPEC TATOR

ARRIVED!

Today’s world is bustling with knowledge that’s thrown at us from every sphere of life. If the whole world is a stage, the show never stops. We’ve closely looked at all the angles of the society, from law to Bollywood and from food to football. We have had a holistic approach in presenting the mag-azine without constraining ourselves to a particular issue for a lot has transpired in the past few months. Be it political strife in the parliament or the sustainable fashion on the runway, we have covered it all for one to gulp it down in a go. The SIES college of Arts, Science and Commerce Journalism department takes pride in presenting this issue after working on it for months and viv-isecting the society to develop an exalted

view of it.

Anita Choudhary

ADVERTISEMENTKaushik sodhi

c o n t e n t s

6 POLITICAL INTERNS

8 NO CONFIDENCE MOTION

10 SECTION 377

11 GOVERNMENT VS JUDICIARY

12 NIKKAH HALALA

14 OTHERS, But OURS.

15 ANTHURIUM FESTIVAL

16 NOTHING IS TOO GIRLY

18 MARVEL VS DC , DESI GAME OF THRONES

20 WHERE DO WE DRAW THE LAXMAN REKHA ?

4

page 2

page 12

page 18 page 10

page 24

c o n t e n t s

22 GREEN IS THE NEW BLACK

24 ESCAPING THE CHAOS OF THE CITY

26 DISCOVERING PARWINDER

28 THE UNDERVALUED WILDLIFE

29 GREEK GYORS - EAT BIG , EAT GREEK

30 DAANE DAANE PE LIKHA HAI KHANE WALE KA NAAM

31 ARE YOU READY TO KICK SOME BALL? BECAUSE TEAM INDIA IS READY

32 SACRED GAMES

33 GOLD

34 NUDE

M A R C H 2 0 11 U N I V E R S A L M A G A Z I N E 5

P O L I T I C A LI N T E R N S

The 2019 General Elections are coming in the next nine months and all the leading political parties

except the BJP and Congress are hiring Interns. There are only few government jobs out there, but for political parties, there is a huge vacancy. Facebook was used in Pre-election period in 2014 by the BJP, but in 2018 we have range of social networking devices like Instagram, Digital flexes, image-branding websites and Apps of MLA’s/MP’s. Inspired mr. Modi, now such tactics are even being used in local Corporation Elections. The main attraction in 2014 was AD campaigns, and the ruling party has enhanced it ever since. For 2019 Elections AD Campaigns, bjp is hiring brilliant copywriters, Ad film makers, Content creators, Graphic Designers accordingly. BJP, however, isn’t limiting itself to the digital world, in the print medium it’s hiring one page slots easily available at the newspaper stands.

There are only few government jobs out there, but for political parties, there is a huge vacancy.

Written By AJAY BHASKAR GHOLAP


P O L I T I C A L

The political party representative or The ‘KaryyaKarta’ culture is changing, in early days The karyyakartas use to take Meetings or The ‘Sabhas’ under scorching Sun, giving slogans to their Beloved Leaders; back then the y used to be loyal to their party and now the ‘Followers’ change their Party accord-ing to the ‘Wave’. Earlier there were no Mobile phones and Conversations use to happen hand-in-hand and open. Also, the Party followers were aware of ‘Ground level’ problems and Solutions and accordingly the karyyakarta Culture has changed. In the last 4-5 years, people have Protested/Morchas against Inflation, Caste, and media played important role by covering this LIVE and giving regular updates.

this initiative. Seeing this performance the candidate is permanently hired

The Management system has updated from Kautaliya to Shivaji till Recent Suite-Booted Management Students and according to changing ‘colours of politics’, the cycle repeats and so that even Interns how effec-tively changes the Voters mind and this turns into masses and this masses turns down the Margin of winning and losing.

The new interns Includes the Doctors, Lawyers, Engginers, and Beaurocrats in Top most positions heading the Legal cell, IT cell, Minority cell e.t.c; And the fresher, The inexperienced ones for back - office woks as they are able to connect what ‘TREND’ is going on And what set of Gadgets are updated every fortnight plus how to use this. They give information about the various decisions that State & Central Govt. is handling, What are the plans and Enforcement? What is the Party Stand on a particu-lar issue? All has to be updated 7 to 8 times a day. Same tactics is followed by the Non-Ruling party or The Opposition followers or the Media handle some-times welcoming the Plan or sometime Carry outing the Flaws of the ruling

government, in Maharashtra the NCP and MNS is doing such and changing The flow.

Gone are the days when Leaders were simply focusing on Agendas and propa-gandas. Today’s leader defame others in front of media and share a pint of Whisky at night with him, Now days politics when someone has to enter, even Criminals joins the race, without concerning the previous records and yes considering the ‘Wealth and Family background’ and Back in time has done A mass protest which has gained a notable Public image. In today’s politics the ‘Neta’ is considered bigger than their own ‘Father’ by the Followers. But in today both Fighting Goons and educated orators are required some sought of balance and those Parties cope up with this has

the complete setup of fighting and winning elections. Even the Educated ones are having interested in politics but don’t want in complex way. The young generation includes the Orators from Media and Management stu-dents and IT and Engginers to handle various Facebook page and Website, This includes Questions and Answer the ‘Comment’ posted on pages.

The MIT School of Governance in Pune, TATA Institute of Social Science and Rambhau’s Prabhodhini Political Assistance centre in Bhayndar, just kilometres away from Mumbai. Are famous of people here in Mumbai; they teach and prepare ‘How an ideal candi-date should be’ and rather than what is taught the books {theory} and study changes according to media trends. The Psychology study of Individuals &

Masses is the latest one. Even in 70s and 80s The Indian Congress started promot-ing Young set of leaders through NSUI & Yuvak Congress, today it isn’t effective and same sought of planning is done by Leading Political parties, The BJP has ‘BJYM’ The Yuva Morcha, the ShivSena”s ‘Yuvasena’ led by Aaditya Thackarey and NCP’S ‘Yuvati Aaghadi’ [young female vol-unteers] led by Supriya Sule-Pawar And the followers due to in influence and how the ‘karyyaKartas’ Mould the issue and present. The Regional dous, the Shivsena in Mumbai and NCP in Rural Maharashtra is seem to be popular due to this tactics. In recent years the new thoughts and ideas are now being accepted by the top-Lead-ers; one such was ‘BETI BACHAO – BETI PADHAO’ By Maharahstra’s BJP digital cell head, Rajendra Phadke and gained lots of attention on creating the ‘Facebook Frame’ and here opposition also appreciated


P O L I T I C A L

NO CONFIDENCE MOTIONMissed out on the no-confidence? Have a brief look:

Written By ESHAAN PATIL

“India is a victim of BJP’s political weapon called Jumla Strike” said the President of Indian National

Congress Rahul Gandhi while speaking in the Parliament when the 27th Motion of No-Confidence took place against the Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi.Motion of No-Confidence is a vote which states that a person(s) in a position of responsibility (government, manage-rial, etc.) is no longer deemed fit to hold that position, perhaps because they are inadequate in some respect, are failing to carry out obligations, or are making decisions that other members feel det-rimental. As a parliamentary motion, it demonstrates to the head of state that the elected parliament no longer has confidence in (one or more mem-bers of ) the appointed government. Till now, there have been 27 no-confi-dence motions in the Indian parliament and Indira Gandhi has faced the wrath

maximum number of times, ie, 15. This year we saw Telugu Desam Party MP, Kesineni Srinivas, moved the mo-tion after accusing Narendra Modi for not fulfilling their demands of special status to Andhra Pradesh. The speaker of the Parliament, Sumitra Mahajan, admitted the motion as over 50 MPs of the opposition stood in support of it.Before the voting, Sonia Gandhi, the former President of the Con-gress said that the numbers were in their favour. In response to it the

Affairs Minister, Ananth Kumar, said that Sonia Gandhi’s math is weak.On the day of the voting Rahul Gandhi gave a half an hour speech in which he spoke about BJP and its 21st century political weapon ‘Jumla Strike’. He said that the victims of these strikes were the farmers, youngsters, Dalits, tribal and the women. Rahul Gandhi also talked about the promises made by the PM of giving jobs to 2 crore youngsters and his in-ability fulfill his promise. He said that the Congress had brought the GST which


P O L I T I C A L

was opposed by Modi himself when he was the Chief Minister of Gujrat. He added that their GST was common for all goods and service but Modi’s GST has 5 types. He ac-cused Modi of meeting selected 10-12 big businessman and not concentrating on the small ones which were larger in numbers. Rahul even talked about how Jayesh Shah was able to multiply his money 16 times. He talked about the Rafale Deal and how it costed their government only 520 crores per plane and is costing the BJP govern-ment 1600crores. He also accused Modi for

helping his friend and businessman in making profit of approximate value of 4500 crores. “Aap Choukidar nahi Bhagi-dar ho.” he said. Rahul Gandhi conclud-ed the speech by saying that you might hate me, call me ‘Papu”, but he still wouldn’t hate them and has a lot of re-spect in his heart for them after which he went on to hug the Prime Minister.In reply to Rahul Gandhi’s speech Modi said, “don’t worry I am not going to leave anyone.” He said that this is not Government’s floor test but the Con

gress Party’s floor test. He mocked Rahul Gandhi by saying that before the result people had to come to his seat to remove him and added that they are no one to re-move him or put him there, it’s the people of India who have that power. He made jokes about Rahul Gandhi’s winking in the parliament. He said that the opposi-tion plays dirty politics by emotionally blackmailing the Dalits, lower caste and others who suffer. He said that Congress were responsible for the India-Pakistan partition and we still suffer and how they partitioned the state of Andhra Pradesh and they suffer now. He criticized Rahul for his kiddish behavior. He defended the Rafale Deal by saying the facts were tampered. He said that he supported the GST then also but had asked the then PM to look properly into the matters and then only to take the decision. He requested the State Government to take strict actions against the people who’ve been accused of creating violence. He in-vited the opposition parties to 2024 no confidence vote and ended his speech.After Modi’s speech the process of voting was explained by the speaker and voting took place which resulted in huge victory


P O L I T I C A L

Just like gender, human beings are born with their sexual preferences. That is the nature of the universe. The world is divided based on the basic principle of

gender which primarily includes males and females. But the classifications are a little more complex than this. The term LGBT was added to our dictionaries in the 1990s and since then, the community has gained recognition, representation and a whole lot of criticism for itself. The

community in In-dia especially, fac-es not only social but also legal dif-ficulties. Section 377 of the Indian Penal Code crimi-nalizes sexual ac-tivities “against the order of na-ture”, this includes homosexual ac-

tivities.

Since 2014 citi-zens have been al-lowed to change their gender without sex reas-signment surgery and have a right

to register themselves under a third gender. While they have bought themselves a constitutional right, their dig-nity has been traded. This is because transgenders face problems like honor-killing, lynching, attacks taking away their fundamental right of protection of personal life and liberty under article 21 of the constitution, also contradicting to the provisions under article 15 of the constitution promising abolition of discrimination on

various grounds including gender.

Due to legal ambiguity of the procedure, Indian trans-gender individuals do not have access to safe medical facilities. however, there are few legal measures such as: I. Every person must have the right to decide their gender expression and identity, including transsexuals, Transgenders, transvestites, and hijras. They should also have the right to freely express their gender identity. This includes the demand for hijras to be considered fe-

male as well as a third sex.

II. There should be a special le-gal protection against this form of discrimination inflicted by both state and civil society which is very akin to the offence of prac-ticing untouch-

ability.

III. Civil rights un-der law, such as the right to get a passport, ration card, make a will, inherit property

and adopt

children must be available to all regardless of change in gender / sex identities.

Our law on one hand provides security to the communi-ty but takes away some of the basic fundamental rights

on the other.

1 0 U N I V E R S A L M A G A Z I N E M A R C H 2 0 11

P O L I T I C A L

SECTION 377 :Contradictory to basic fundamental rights.

Written By ANITA CHOUDHARY

M A R C H 2 0 11 U N I V E R S A L M A G A Z I N E 1 1

P O L I T I C A L

GOVERENMENT

In our democracy neither the parliament nor the Supreme Court is supreme, the constitution is supreme.

Written By SHEFALI ONAWALE

One makes the laws and the other enforces it. One empow-ers the people, the other protects them. India, a federal constituency where the power is divided between the

centre and the state can expect disputes. Similarly, being a de-mocracy the three constitutional pillars, the legislative, the exec-utive and the judiciary can too expect conflicts. The difference is, the latter seeks to constantly resolve disputes relating to authori-ty. For years, the executive has accused the judiciary of overreach and the judiciary constantly drags attention to the problems of interference it faces. India being a democracy empowers every citizen with rights. Everyone is born with these rights, even though they are not a concession given by the state to the citizens, it is imperative for the superior court to protect it since the only threat to the rights of citizens is the monopoly of the government’s power. Since the executive makes the laws, the legislative implements it, it is necessary for the judiciary to have full independence to protect the laws for the people. Thus, one major factor that makes a de-mocracy successful is the independence of the judiciary. In our democracy neither the parliament nor the Supreme Court is supreme, the constitution is supreme. But the problem is, the constitution is made by the parliament ie., the government. Does this practically make the government superior to the judiciary?

-The answer is no. The constitution has given the parliament the right to amend the constitution with a 2/3rd majority. This fraction might not even represent the majority of the country. The government can amend the constitution as per the pres-ent time’s requirement keeping in mind not to change its ‘basic structure’ as provided by the supreme Court’s verdict in the Ke-savananda Bharti case, this alone gives judiciary the power to undo the amendments that are in conflict with the basic struc-ture of the constitution, this include the fundamental rights. On the other hand, when the Supreme Court gives a verdict, it becomes the law of the land under article 141 of the consti-tution, but the government has the power to amend any law, thus nullifying the court’s verdict. Even though it might seem as if one is trying to override the other, the constitution has done justice to separate the powers of the three pillars in such a way that each has the authority to check the other while enjoying independent authority. This prevents exploitation of power and breach of the democratic nature of the constitution. Even though the judiciary seeks independence, the independence is not absolute. One might think the executive and the legislative outweigh the judiciary, but the powers are distributed such that each being indepen-dent is also answerable to the other.

VSJUDICIARY


Written By NUZHAT AZMI

C U LT U R E

NIKKAH HALALA


C U LT U R E

After triple talaq the centre is all set to throw weight on halala nikkah . The centre extended their support on this issue as they came up with

humiliating cases, and this year the Centre agreed on reviewing the petition. What is nikkah halal?Nikkah halala is a practice in Islam after the triple talaq. In nikkah halala after the husband gives triple talaq, the woman goes under iddat period( an Islamic rule followed after divorce of 4 months 10 days ) then she marries another man ,consummates her first marriage ,followed by a divorce with the latter husband only to remarry her former husband. Quran chapter[ surah al bakrah] and [surah talaq ] explains, if a husband divorces his wife for the third time, then he cannot remarry her until she is married to another man which ends in a divorce since there is no blame on either in case of reunification. This provision in Islam was meant to prevent married men to divorce women in jest and to protect the mar-ried life. As the Quran says a man should not even think of getting a divorce and so a stringent law was put in place to discourage practicing of talaaq mentioned in Surah talaq. Such practices lead to dire consequences. Some people argue the presence of nikah halala in the Quran. The Quran says a woman becomes a haram or forbid-den to her husband after she has been divorced. And in Islam, a husband has the rights to give triple talaaq and wife also has option of khula. However, women feel their rights are violated and they demand justice against such humiliations. “There has been a misuse of quran”, shamefully say the former Islamic heads. Many cases have surfaced on grounds of injustice and misuse of Islamic rules.

In a recent survey, several cases proved the practice of nikah halala as a violation of human rights .In north india, women have been threatened by their husbands who’ve forced them for nikkah halala . Furthermore, there have many cases of rape. A victim said her hus-band forced her and the another man raped her for nik-kah halala.This controversial practice has also exposed moulvis who offer one night stands for nikah halala in exchange for money. This is nothing short of a sex racket. They charge 1.5 lakh-2 lakh and have made a business out of it, in the name of religion. In India, Muslim women are also protected by the Constitution that is not ambiguous, and it is in light of that that many Muslim women are demanding equal-ity and justice. Article 14 guarantees equal rights to all citizens. Article 15 prohibits discrimination on grounds of religion, race, caste, sex or place of birth. Article 25 says that religious freedom is subject to fundamental rights. However, these fights for justice are condemned and objected by the muslim bodies. Judicial talaq is a cruelty under Section 498A of the IPC, Nikah Halala is an offence under Section 375 of the IPC, and Polygamy is an offence under Section 494 of the IPC, 1860.The judiciary has agreed to review the petition this year after lots of efforts of SC fighting for muslim women rights. However, this petition is likely to open a can of worms and start a debate about the civil code of India, bringing in light the Shah Bano case. Although, religion has a strong hold in India, the judiciary doesn’t lag behind. Whether justice will prevail or women will be exploited even further lies in the hands of the SC.


C U LT U R E

OTHERS, but Ours.Sometimes auspicious, sometimes a threat but an inseparable part of the society. These

are the Transgenders, or as India call them, “The Others”.

Written By AMRITA BHUTE

Transgenders are generally people who have a gender identity that differs from their assigned sex.

They are sometimes described as “tran-sexual” who transform from one sex to another sex, through medical assistance. The Supreme Court of India has official-ly declared the transgenders(including Hijras and others)as the “third gen-der”, in 2014. But is this enough? Justice KS Radhakrishnan noted in his de-cision that, “Seldom, our society realizes or cares to realize the trauma, agony and pain which the members of Transgender com-munity undergo, nor appreciates the innate feelings of the members of the Transgen-der community, especially of those whose mind and body disown their biological sex”.Even if they are legally recognized, they are not socially accepted. Their struggle starts from their family itself. It is difficult for them to share the realization of physi-cal and emotional change with their fam-ily or peers. They fear not being accepted by the society due to which they suffer from depression and frustration. This re-sults in forced marriages which eventually lead to problems between the partners. Some people undergo surgeries like Hor-mone Replacement Therapy, Sex Reas-signment Surgery, to keep up with their assigned sex. But not every transgender can afford the costs of such surgeries and continue with their struggle. They are de-prived of even the basic education result-ing in unemployment. As a result, they re-sort to performing in weddings, begging on roads or trains to earn a living. Many of them get involved in prostitution, will-ingly or unwillingly, to earn a full square meal. The one institution that has a duty to protect the civilians, the police too con-tribute to their difficulties by harassing

them, beating them up over allegations of being sex workers, robbery and cre-ating nuisance. The police without fol-lowing the procedure of trial or without evidence take law in their own hands and beat them up, no questions asked. Com-mitting a crime automatically becomes secondary if the person is a transgender.The transgender community is denied equal protection of laws, violating the provisions of Article 14 of the constitution. They are subjected to sexual violence in-cluding molestation, gang-rape, anal and oral sex, stripping in public, etc. When they intend to file a complaint against as-sailants, they are insulted by the police by saying, ‘you are a hijra, you only had done something to attract the culprit’. Due to this, these people are afraid of seeking help. Not just this, they are discriminated in pub-lic places, this violates the basic fundamen-tal right to equality. They are denied seats in local trains and buses treating them like untouchables violating the provisions provided in article 17 of the constitution. In recent times, people have come for-ward and are working for the rights and equality of the community. There are now various trusts, NGOs which protect and support them. One of these is the Humsafar Trust founded by a journalist, writer, Ashok Rao Kavi in 1980.This trust

helps a number of people from the LGBT community, trying to provide these people with proper academic and sex education, basic amenities. One of the known personalities of this community is Gauri Sawant who is the founder of Sakhi Charchow-ghi Trust that helps and supports transgenders. Gauri Sawant, herself is a transsexual. Originally, Ganesh Sawant, was a man who belonged to a conservative family. He was at-tracted to the behavior and the dress sense of a female and wanted it for himself. His family was against his transition from man to woman, so he left his home and came to Mum-bai and finally converted himself to Gauri Sawant, with the help of Hum-safar . Today she has her own NGO and now is one among those nota-ble people who help the community. Transgenders are no different from other people. They are first humans and then the citizens of India who not only want legal but also so-cial protection. If India is the larg-est democracy in the world, why does it treat this community as the “other” community? The answer is, India Is people’s democracy and we fail to treat each other as equals.

The truth is, no amount of legal protection can buy them dignity.


C U LT U R E

ANTHURIUM FESTIVALWritten By SHEFALI SHINDE

Anthurium festival is a festival of Mizoram, one of the seven sisters, where people are known as “mizos”. This festival is a three

day long event organized by the state govern-ment, celebrated every September to promote tourism and the cultivation of Anthurium.Anthurium is a flower plant which is cultivated in Mizoram. During the 3 days event, it is the most prominent and anticipated tourism festivals of Mizoram where they are taken to the amazing Anthurium plantation. It is celebrated at tour-ist resort in Reiek village at foothills of mystic Reiek Mountain. The halcyon beauty of Reiek village adds a charm to the festival. People visit this place from within and outside the country. Mizo tribes come together to showcase their mesmerizing culture and tradition. Anthurium flower, grown there is kept for display as well as for sale. In these 3 days of festival, tribal people organize their indigenous games and sports. The festival is marked by their delicacies, folk songs and dances. They also organize fashion shows to display their traditional attires and music con-certs. They have divergent ways of harvesting and cooking. They keep a sale of beautiful hand-icrafts and bamboo products made by them. Anthurium festival is indeed a coruscat-ing festive moment for tourists. If one is in


C U LT U R E

NOTHING IS TOO GIRLYA textile artist embroidering her way through patriarchy.

Written By SIMRAN POL

Amidst a phase of young adulthood and other peer com-mitments, Sarah Naqvi, a 22 year old, finds the most un-conventional way of conveying her idea about women

issues in a patriarchal society by using textile designing and hand embroidery. This Fashion designing student with her free-spirited idea is trying to make women feel comfortable in her own skin. From painting on canvas to fabrics, embroidering on sanitary napkins to tampons, she has successfully created her art form on various issues that are considered a taboo in this orthodox society. Her usage of unusual ingredients draws even more attention towards issues related to women empow-erment. This young artist tries to generalize women body and its attributes like menstruation, pubic hair and ideal size of the breast.

Desexualize Women.We talk about this new India with modernization and technological development, but there seems to be abso-lutely no change in the conventional society. Where the world’s superpower is fighting to ‘free the nipple’ and Indi-ans are facing a hard time to purchase uncovered sanitary pads from the store. Patriarchy is dominating every corner of the world. One of Naqvi’s projects on her social media includes #desexualizewomen. It was her fair attempt to break the boundaries that are been set by the society for the wom-en. She made art pieces that de-objectify the women body. This hoop embroidered bra cup tries to carry a message of body positivity to the women. Naqvi conveys her poi-gnancy towards the society that has set a standard body size which defines the beauty of an individual woman’s body.This was made using scrap pieces of cloths and a black thread that depicts pubic hair. The message was to gener-alize Pubic hair and its growth that doesn’t let the society decide how women should look.


C U LT U R E

Sarah has been raised in a very typical Indian orthodox society but her family has always supported her with her path breaking ideas. In a society where embroidery is con-sidered to be a very feminine art form, she found a way out to raise important issues that every girl is suppressed with. With every piece of her art work, she is trying to prove how powerful of all mediums is embroidery to carry her voice.

Sex EducationIn a country where myths have been around for centuries and people are regressive, sex education is still consid-ered to be taboo. People are uncomfortable and the idea of ‘generation gap’ will never allow the generalizing of sex in adults, masturbation in women and even menstrua-tion for that matter. Sarah’s’ attempt to spread the image of these things has helped her raise awareness, but at the same time, she has also been criticized for showcasing pri-vate gender-based things on social media. She has made various paintings and stitching to create the visuals of the most unspoken women issues, which aren’t even issues. Like the ones we see here. This red thread and beads embroidery on a sanitary napkin is slamming a door in the faces of Sanitary napkin companies that show the menstrual blood of blue color. Most of the artwork that she did is inspired by her life ex-periences and the things she sees around in the society. Twenty-two year old Sarah Naqvi, a textile design student is all set to take over the mainstream textile design indus-try with a pinch of feminism and right sense of the society.



MARVEL VS DC : I would rather be a part of Marvel uni-verse as avengers are there and is are the X-men, it would be a terrific time to see all the heroes and their interactions.DESI GAME OF THRONES: It would be a comedic relief if GOT were to be made in India.

- Anshika Gupta. SYBMMMARVEL VS DC : Marvel. Coz it’s has always been better than DC. No offense, comparing the Marvel Cinematic is the best and highest grosser all time.DESI GAME OF THRONES: It won’t differ much

- Bonaventure Fernandes BBI

MARVEL VS DC : I would like to be a part of Marvel uni-verse. Since childhood, I loved Spiderman as he swings from one rooftop to other. I too tried flying like him when I was 5 years old that resulted in face crash on the wall. But I didn’t stop myself from training hard as I always believed in a saying “I can do all things”. Also, marvel is one where each charac-ter posess a uniqueness because of power like slinging, light speed , brain storming and one of my favourite till now- the IRON FIST.DESI GAME OF THRONES If it got made in India, then the bar will increase 1000 times up because we are with talents but unable to use it when need arises . So, it will provide a platform to act on skills possessed by each character . They need many but all can be found in one.

- Agarwal Karan, SYBFMMARVEL VS DC : Marvel. I find it more interesting than DC because it’s more descriptive and it’s populated with avengers which is filled with stories crossing from the big screen to the small which makes it a lot of fun to get involved.DESI GAME OF THRONES: Over dramatic and Epicness, I swear!

- Simranjit Kaur Wariah. SYBBI

MARVEL VS DC : Marvel, they have Thor and his mighty hammer ;)DESI GAME OF THRONES: Lol, it’d be a nightmare for the censor board.

- Lee, BMM



MARVEL VS DC : MarvelDESI GAME OF THRONES: On the basis of Indian mythology (if followed)

- Bhavna SYBMS

MARVEL VS DC : Marvel, because there is a humour ele-ment in marvel.DESI GAME OF THRONES: It would be like an Ekta Kapoor show

- Rishika Iyer, SYBMM

MARVEL VS DC : Marvel, because the ending is always sweet and blissful, with bits of humour and adrenaline rushing actions. Marvel will be a perfect life to haveDESI GAME OF THRONES: We will get a screen shaking and splashing effects from the windows movie maker withe Ram song and Nashik Dhol banging in the back when Jon snow gets to now about his aunt Dany.

- Ashwin Menon, FYBFM

MARVEL VS DC : I’d rather be a part of the Marvel universe because Marvel has that whole package of entertainment con-taining loads of action, drama, comedy, etc. And the Marvel universe ( both comic and cinematic) never fails to entertain it’s audiencesDESI GAME OF THRONES Rather than being dark, it would’ve been absolutely comedic.

- Fahad, COMMERCE.

MARVEL VS DC : D.CDESI GAME OF THRONES Full on humorous and dramatic

- Unnati, FYBMM


C U LT U R E

WHERE DO WE DRAW

Religion and superstition stem from similar beliefs but one must know to differentiate

between them.

Written By JESSICA GOEL

THE LAXMAN REKHA?


C U LT U R E

“WE THE PEOPLE OF INDIA, having solemnly re-solved to constitute India into a SOVEREIGN, SOCIALIST,SECULAR ,DEMOCRATIC REPUB-

LIC ..” Though the term secular wasn’t always a part of our constitution, it was adopted in the preamble with the 42nd amendment. Secularism was accepted to ensure equal rights and impartiality towards all religions. The principle of secularism provides the citizens of India with the right to liberally indulge in religious practices and propagate it. People bathe in the Ganges with hopes to wash away the sins, chant Hanuman Chalisas, refrain consumption of non-vegetarian on Tuesdays, cast votes based on promises of temple construction, pray 5 times a day, fast during holy days, cremate or bury the dead, freely, as an expression of secularism. However, just like in Ramayana, Ram had his counterpart Raavana, no indian society can thrive without its counter evil. One may know it as a black cat crossing the path or fasting during solar eclipse or breaking of a mir-ror. The superstitions in india are ubiquitous. Some people surrender to superstition backed by tradition while some choose to respect it as a precaution in case it’s true. H However, the lines are blurred as far as malpractices in the name of religion are concerned. The self -styled God-men aren’t the solitary issue. Gullible minds and traps set by the wicked pose a problem to practicing religion open-ly without apprehension. The corrupted minds, however, have latched onto the train of secularism, adulterating the religious practices resulting in sickening people. There’s a fine line between faith and blind faith which is highly ex-ploited by the likes of these. The belief that God will heal all wounds and provide eternal salvation has driven peo-ple to extreme ends, be it in the political arena or the ordi-nary people. The recent letter to god by Madhya Pradesh Congress Chief Kamal Nath seeking His blessings to end BJP’s “misrule” or the Burari’s 11 people hanging to attain salvation proves the polarized interpretations of God. In light of the gruesome suicide by a family of 11 in the NCR for a mere congregation raises serious questions about faith. The family is said to suffer from shared psychosis, wherein one person’s delusional beliefs are transmitted to others. One of the family member’s claimed to be having conversations with the dead father who pushed them to attain “shunya”, “salvation” through the performed proce-dure. The family was religious and well educated but failed to perceive the distinction between Grim Reaper disguised as Gabriel. Another case of Perambalur in Tamil Nadu, high-lights the belief of people in resurrection through prayers. A small family continued to perform superstitious ‘poojas’ for 3 months with a dead body by a self- styled ‘Tantric’ to ward off evil spirits.The rationale behind keeping up with the superstitions is defeated when it comes to beliefs of people. India is a country which emphasizes on its diversity and cultural roots. It holds tradition close and its beliefs closer. Since

India is a god-fearing country, its superstitions are deeply rooted. Another reason for prevalent superstitions in india is the education. More than half of its population being situated in the rural area fails to comprehend the scientific facts and indulges in myths. The urban population succumbs to super-stitions because the curriculum fails to develop conceptual understanding. The hand doesn’t fail to reach the students when the teachers themselves are within the grip of supersti-tions. How can one move forward in a country where religion and superstition are often confused for one another? While India’s constitution drafters incorporated secularism to persuade the interests of all religions, the principle is exploit-ed. The law to practice religion freely is acceptable as long as it doesn’t hurt the sentiments of others. However, for the lon-gest time, there was no legal stance to object superstitions devastating people. Incidents reported are just a miniscule proportion of activities that take place in the name of religion. Such disturbances had caused the late Narendra Dabholkhar to fight an 18 year battle for a law to be made against it, only to be passed, posthumously. With heavy debates about its requirement, Maharashtra became the first state to pass an Anti- superstition law to be followed by Bengaluru. The act criminalizes practices related to black magic, human sacri-fices, use of magic remedies to cure ailments and other such acts which exploit people’s superstitions. Several protests were staged claiming the act was anti-Hindu and spoils the sanctity of India’s secularism. These claims were countered by Dabholkar stating that the bill does not mention god or reli-gion and only targets fraudulent practices. The bill in action has 12 clauses criminalizing “the practice of black magic, as-sault, torture, forced ingestion of human excreta, forced sexu-al acts, branding etc. on the pretext of exorcising ghosts from an allegedly possessed person, encouraging inhuman acts or human sacrifice in quest of some bounty or reward and other such malpractices”. Since august 2013, 150 cases have been filed under this act with 60% cases being of sexual exploita-tion of women by the self-styled Godmen. Every superstition cannot be removed with the help of a law. For that, a mental change is necessary. If the pathway to Krish-na is led by a golden staircase, then one must also be careful of the Shakuni mamas.


C U LT U R E

GREEN IS THE NEW BLACK

What looks hip in 2017 is laughed at in 2018. Al-though trends keep on shifting, one fashion move-ment has been steadily gaining preference. Big in-

ternational brands like Gucci, Puma, Stella McCartney, and Calvin Klein have been stressing on sustainable fashion.

What does it mean?

Sustainable fashion can be also called as eco-friendly fash-ion. This means manufacturing clothes, bags, shoes and ac-cessories using materials and processes that won’t harm the planet. It also focuses on improving the working condition in factories. Sustainable fashion has become a highly debat-ed topic. Companies have started to improve their business models to reduce overall environmental damage and ensure that workers aren’t exploited both physically and mentally.

If there is one thing certain in the fashion industry, it is

change.

Written By SHRUTHI SHREEKUMAR

What can we do?1. We all check the price tag before buying any product. What we don’t do is, check what the garment is made up of. Inside every cloth, a small fabric tag is sewed, which mentions the raw materials used in making the garment. Products which are made from fibers of natural origins should be preferred over synthetic i.e. man-made materials. Natural fibers are cotton, linen, jute, hemp, wool and silk. Whereas synthetic materials include polyester, Teflon, nylon, rayon, acrylic etc. Synthetic fabrics though durable and cheap, have an adverse effect on the environment.

2. Investing in designs that do not go out of style is a smart way to ensure that one buys less. For example instead of buy-ing ripped denim that may go out of style, opt for non ripped, straight cut denim that flatters your shape. Learn how to mix and match the outfits instead of buying new ones that do not go with each other. Buy clothes and accessories that can be worn in more than one event or place. For a party after office hours, the smarter way to dress will be wearing a dress and a jacket to the office and ditching the jacket for the party. This will allow you to buy less and use more.

3. Choose brands that use ethical practices to make the products. Nowadays, every other brand has a line of clothing that specifically comes under eco-friendly fash-ion category. Such brands also ensure that the workers are given a safe work environment and facilities.

4. Remember the 3 R’s. Recycling is the best way to be a part of this movement. Major fashion houses and NGOs accept old, torn, ragged clothes which they will later re-cycle and make it fit for re-use like. Emma Watson wore a Calvin Klein dress made entirely out of plastic bottles to the Met Gala and talked about how sustainable fashion is the need of the hour. We can also repair the product instead of replacing it with a new one. This will save mon-ey and also become your small contribution to nature. If you’re a creative person or know someone who is, you can always opt to up-cycle your fashion items. . For ex-ample, cut the sleeves of your old t-shirt; add patches or buttons and it will look as good as new.

5. Each one of us have worn our mother’s sari or our fa-ther’s tuxedo to school or college events. In a way, this also is an effective method to dress up but sustainably. Instead of buying a new outfit that you will probably wear only one time, why not take it from your family or friends? This idea is being used by websites like Flyrobe, Elanic etc, where customers can rent a dress for a week or two. This is an effective way to save money while not compromising on your fashion quotient. Heirloom jew-elry is also another great example of sustainable fashion.


C U LT U R E

New wave in India

Eco friendly is the new cool and India has joined the bandwagon. There are more than 10 fashion brands in India that use responsibly sourced fabric. For e.g. : FabIndia,Upasana,No Nasties, Ethicus etc. Rajesh Pratap Singh’s natural, biodegradable, ethical and environment-conscious textiles are being preferred by a lot of Bollywood stars and socialites. Not only fashion designers but the Ministry of Textiles, NGOs and environment activists are also working hard to spread awareness. In Pune 22 waste pickers and their children walked on a fashion ramp dur-ing World Environment Day week to spread the message of reusing the old clothes.

Sustainable fashion aims to meet the present generation’s needs without compromising needs of the future genera-tion. Zady’s CEO and cofounder Maxine Bédat said it best when she explained that, “The clothing we choose to wear everyday has an enormous impact on the planet and its people. Our clothing can either continue to be a major part of the problem, or it can be an enormous part of get-ting our planet on track. The choice is ultimately ours…”

We must understand that unless we change our ways, we might face dire consequences. So let’s be a part of this movement, reduce the damge and do our bit to help the planet.


E X P L O R E

ESCAPING THE CHAOS OF THE CITYCity on the banks of river Cauvery

Written By JANANI GANESH

This is my first solo journey of 15 days to south India. (Mum-bai Chennai Srirangam). Flipping my airplane ticket and the last minute checklist, in the corner of my heart I had a fear

of things not going my way. Though, once I started, fear poofed away.The flight landed in Chennai late at night. I was supposed to leave to Srirangam the following day. I reached home and was about to doze, when my paati (grandma in Tamil) entered the room to ask how my journey was, but she anyway embarked on an epic monologue. Day 1 of my journey started at the Chennai Egmore railway sta-tion. It had been years since I travelled in the famous Pallavan Express which runs from Chennai to Karaikudi via Tiruchirappalli. The sound of the train chugging into Chennai Egmore got me all excited just how it did a few years back when I travelled as a kid. The train journey was proving sedate, even somnolent as it chugged its way to Srirangam at night. I got down, headed home, had dinner and passed out for the day.My day 1 in Srirangam had begun. Srirangam being home to a number of temples which have rich history and culture, I had planned to go temple-hopping for the next 15 days. My first stop was the famous Ranganatha Swamy temple which is synonymous to Srirangam. It is a Hindu temple dedicated to Ranganatha Swamy-̶ a reclining form (avatar) of Shri Vishnu. Constructed in the Dravidian style of architecture, it is one of the most illustrious Vaishnava temples in South India rich in legend and history. It is also said to be the largest temple in India and one of the largest religious complexes in the world. The temple has 21 gopurams (towers), more than 50 shrines and the famous Aayiram kaal mandapam (a hall with 1000 pillars). Every pillar there has unique designs and sculptures.It also houses the famous Ramanuja Sannidhi (Sanctum Sancto-rum). It is said that his physical body is preserved even today in a sitting posture in the sannidhi dedicated to him on the south-west corner within the temple complex as ordered by lord Ran-ganatha himself. The temple entrance has a variety of shops. One should never miss the Goli Soda drink which you get in those shops. Goli Soda on a hot summer afternoon is all you need to fight away the ex-haustion. I had my Goli Soda and headed to the next temple ̶ The Jam-bukeshwara Temple. The Jambukeshwara temple was built around 1800 years ago by

one of the early Chola kings. It is one among the 5 major Shiva temples (Panchabhoota Sthalam) representing the element of water. The temple is famous for its noon prayer. According to the puranas, Akilandeshwari (a form of goddess Parvati) wor-shipped lord Shiva in this temple. Even today, at noon the priest dresses like a female and offers his prayers to Jambukeshwara and Gau Matha (cow). It’s so famous and a number of devotees attend it every day. Every temple in and around Srirangam has a variety of shops in the entryway. This temple is famous for the flower shops. You get a range of flowers. Be on the lookout for the red-chakra shaped flower (made of Begonia flowers) which is usually made (stringed) for goddess Akilandeshwari. After having visited two big temples, I was exhausted and was ravenous. The locals suggested me to have my lunch in the fa-mous Madapalli restaurant which serves authentic South-Indi-an meals. I had my meal and booked my cab to a nearby village named Valadi. The village had Agraharams (Brahmin settle-ments) which is a cluster of simple homesteads built in a row. The houses have sloping roofs, a well in the backyard and a common wall lining a street. The planning of an Agraharam is dictated by the temple which forms the focal point of the colony. I had a good time talking to the locals and also enjoyed some “My Time” at the Vaaikal (a river canal running through the vil-lage). Days passed and I had clearly lost count of it. I visited similar temples like the one in Rockfort, Trichy and also the celebrated Samayapuram temple which is 11 kms away from Srirangam. I also had to do some shopping at the well-known Mainguard Gate in Rockfort which is the shopping-hub of the city. My evenings were all about attending Bhajans and Kritis in the veedhis (streets) of Srirangam, while the ladies in the street kept themselves busy, drawing elaborate kolams (rangoli), while the men sipped hot filter kaapi to get ready for the evening bhajans. Every alternate day, on the way back home I used to witness the lord on an equipage being carried back to the temple, while horses and elephants followed him along with a number of priests chanting hymns in praise of the lord. Until that time, I did not have inkling about the place where I came from and no clue that this place possessed this amount of history and culture in it. I was indeed on a journey of self-discovery which has changed me for the better.


E X P L O R E


E X P L O R E

Discovering ParwinderWritten By PREALENE KHERA

“Parleen? Priyaleen?”I sighed. The stooping figure of my inquirer, knee-deep in mattresses and blankets; stuck there like a hammered nail was the last thing I remember before I gave away any affection I felt for my name.

“Hanji, Priyaleen.” “Aa ki nau hai? Punjabi kudiya nu chad, goriyan de vi aeje nau nahi hoonde.” Not only was my name too fluffy for a Sikh girl but it wasn’t fit for angrezi people either. I sheepishly managed to smile, as the rucksack on my back grew heavier with every word she spewed at me. I felt a rush of relief when she finally squatted down to fetch me my bed for the the next five nights- a coir mattress, a firm pillow and two paper thin sheets. Plush.She pulled out a key from the drawer marked ‘105’ and set it on the counter, “Aa le, Parwinder”.As I tucked away at my baggage, pulling heaps of load with my tiny frame I couldn’t help but think- indeed Parwinder, here you go.

At 18 years of age, still soft at the edges, I had felt the need to ‘discover’ myself. I carried a small sleeping bag, a Swiss knife- my weapon of choice, a packet of biscuits, a change of clothes, some coffee and a notebook to pen down my journey to en-lightenment. I was elated, brimming with confidence, knowing this detour would transform me but not, as yet, how much. I left Mumbai later that week and caught the Haridwar Express to Rishikesh. Now I was here, with sweat coveting me as I let out puffs of air, 20 flights of stairs later- dragging behind me not only all of my weight plus more but also my will to not go back home.


E X P L O R E

The next day, determination bellowed within me. Outside my room I could already hear the scurrying of feet to the faint rhythm of the chiming bell. Nirmal Ashram, my sanctuary, was quite love-ly. Inspired from the teachings of the first Sikh guru, Guru Nanak Dev Ji’s ‘Nirmal Panth’, the ashram, quaint and welcoming, asked for no payment from the travellers and was open to all.

I wasn’t entirely sure how I would begin this ‘discovering’ process so I moved through the ashram, hoping I’d find inspiration. It came to me in a six feet, hefty sardar- Surinder Ji, as I would soon come to call him. “Hello! Are you lost? You are new? Myself, Surinder!”, he blurted excitedly.

My acquaintance broke the ice with a sledgehammer as we wormed our way down the hall, muttering, giggling and grum-bling. He was a mechanical engineer who left his job to become a yoga instructor and built his own studio on the foothills of the Himalayas. He now spent six months traveling- teaching firaangis the art of yoga. At the end of the corridor, the curtains to the lan-gar were drawn. Surinder Ji, aware of what brought me to Rishikesh, chirped “Cooking, you know? It will help you. Give you calm and patience.”Before I could negate his idea, he proclaimed “Tu ta punjaban eh, tenu ta dal te roti banani aandhi honi!” Once again, like a piece of wool stuck in a branch, I was caught. I didn’t have the heart to tell him that even though I was a Sikh kudi, cooking was alien to me. As we inched closer to the kitchen, I felt adrenaline pumping around my body. “We can turn back now”, I whispered to myself.The clanking of spoons grew, so did the pit in my stomach. The curtains gulped me whole, and spat me into the kitchen-the final countdown began.

The dupatta wrapped across my face, proved to be no match against the burning tears that rolled down my cheeks as I chopped the onions. Maha ki Dal. Black Lentils. With about 4 cups of soaked dal, I calculated based on all my years of cooking experience (zero) that I needed about 20 cups of water. I added the concoction all at once with about a fist full of salt, into the pressure cooker. As the steam built up, I searched the kitchen for ingredients that would add to the savoury experience. Hiss. Cloves, cardamom, chilli, gar-lic, tomatoes, corn flour and garam masala; ground, chop, mix. Hiss. I heated the kadhai and sprinkled few drops of oil, in went the condiments. Together. Hiss. Three whistles should do. The af-termath of my choices wasn’t the flavour I was looking for.

I surveyed the innocent crowd waiting to feast on my Franken-stein of a dish. Fortunately the chattai had only two people. An agitated Surinder Ji, in conversation with an angrez. He sat with his legs crossed, a burgundy afghan covered his pallid feet. His hands lay flat against the curve of the glass; uncertain about the

beverage he was drinking. The beverage was the least of his wor-ries. I walked across the length of the carpet and sat in front of the two men; I’d rather have been home sitting next to my decent plate of food sans any notions of discovering myself.

“Prashada” one of the sevak announced as he came in with a bas-ket filled with steaming rotis. I reached out my hand and received a blank stare in return. “Do”, he said.No, no. One roti would be enough. Still holding out one hand, I wondered why he wasn’t giving me the prasad.Unimpressed, he grumbled again- “Do.”Absurd. I couldn’t stomach two rotis with that horrendous dal and so I replied, “Nahi, sirf ek roti.”He took the basket and slammed it to the ground and brought together both his hands and cupped them in front of me. “Do haat!”, he growled.Oh. The angrez cackled at my ignorance, “Neine, you’re supposed to cup both your hands because you’re asking for ‘Praashaad’. It is disrespectful if you don’t.”Oh. He was German. A well informed German.

My thali was an assortment of phulke, dal, some potatoes and kheer. As I broke into the bread I realised he was humming a gen-tle tune under his breath. “Waheguru, waheguru, waheguru..”Surinder Ji heard it too. We stared at the peculiar angrez, agape. “You know, I’ve been following Sikhism for a while now. I don’t think you need to be surprised.”, he announced to the two of us.I began “Ah, sorry. This is just new to us..um-?”“Greg! Call me Greg.”“Greg.” I nodded.Soon after, Greg took us on a narrative journey of his exploits that began in the south of Egypt and sailed across the Nile, from the seaport of Douala to exploring the Savannah’s of Nigeria, he escaped trouble in Turkey and found his way to Romania. Hitch-hiking through Belarus, shipping away in the Norwegian Sea, to learning how to drive into fire hydrants in Canada, he told us ev-erything. He was an adventurer. Before I could collapse in awe, I heard the clink of my spoon against my bowl. It was empty. Surinder Ji and I had gobbled up every single piece of morsel while Greg mystified us.As I tried to recall how I finished my dal, Surinder Ji leaned in and whispered, ever so slightly-“I think the Kheer was a little too sweet.”Greg wiped his mouth and apologised, “Forgive me, I’ve been talking to you for so long but I didn’t quite ask for your name.”Before I could reply, Surinder Ji interjected-“Oh, her name is Parwinder”.


E X P L O R E

Previously, Wildlife referred to undomesticed animals that lived in the wilderness. But recently all the organisms, plants and fungi, untouched or that grow and live in the

wild and away from human life, is called wildlife. In line with a study, Republic of India alongside different sixteen mega diverse countries is a home to concerning 60-70% of the world’s variety. India, lying among the Indoma-laya ecozone, is home to concerning 7;6% of all class, 12.6% of craniates (bird), 6.2% of reptilian, and 6.0% of phanerogam species. India’s wildlife has been the topic of various tales and fables like the Panchatantra. In the last 2000 years, 106 species of animals and 139 species of birds became extinct thanks to geographical changes. Ac-cording to a recent study, the red book as listed 600 species of animals as endangered species likely to be extinct in the next 10 years. The value of life has been widely under-rated within the past by the international community. At most, life was thought-about from the restricted aesthetic and touristic aspects. With-in the majority of the veterinary profession, that is essentially livestock-oriented, life is progressively thought-about in terms of untamed animal production and occupies even as relevant a foothold as fauna production. The importance of life to na-tive communities is currently globally recognised in com-munity-based or democratic natural resources management programmes. The authors highlight not solely the economic importance of life (which amounts to billions of us bucks world-wide), through consumptive and non-consumptive uses, how-ever additionally this and potential biological process worth, the ecological role moreover because the socio-cultural sig-nificance of life for human societies of each the developed and therefore the developing worlds. At present, there are nineteen National parks and 202 sanctu-aries scattered throughout Republic of India. They comprise a complete space of concerning seventy five, 000 sq. km. that roughly involves nineteen of reserve forest space and a couple of.3% total geographic area of the country. Sanctuaries and parks not solely shield life however safe guard varied scheme, forestall wearing and facilitate in utilization of wastes. Several of them square measure accessible to the Indian moreover as foreign tourists and so of measure.Top 10 national parks of Republic of India 1. Ranthambore parkland, RajasthanFamous for- Tigers, leopards, Hyenas, Jackals, Jungle cats, Indi-an Foxes and a good vary of birds like Pelicans, Ibis, Flamingos, Egrets, and Parakeets2. Sunderbans parkland, state

Famous for- The Royal Panthera tigris, Crocodiles, bull sharks, primates and snakes, dolphins3. Corbett parkland, UttarakhandFamous for - Tigers, noticed cervid, Elephants, Golden canine, Cervus unicolor deers4. Gir parkland, GujaratFamous for- Asiatic Lions, Indian leopards, sloth bears, jungle cats, stripy hyenas, snakes, blackbucks, crocodiles, monitor liz-ards5. Bannerghatta Biological Park, KarnatakaFamous for - elephant sanctuary, a tiger park, a butterfly park6. Kaziranga parkland, AssamFamous for- Tigers, Rhinos, Elephants, Swamp deer, Wild Buf-falo7. Periyar parkland, KeralaFamous for- one horned perissodactyl mammal (Rihno), Ele-phants, Tigers, Leopards, Deers, snakes and reptiles8. Bandhavgarh parkland, Madhya PradeshFamous for - white tiger9. Hemis parkland, Jammu geographical regionFamous for-endangered animals just like the cat, the Asiatic Capra ibex, the red fox, and Tibetan wolf.10. the nice range parkland, Himachal PradeshFamous for- The cat, musk deer, primates, range pit vipeMeasures are taken in these national parks for the survival of the many of the species. These square measures include the areas, declared by statute, for the aim of protective, propagat-ing or developing wild life for his or her scientific, academic and recreational worth. Animals in zoos and campaign parks suffer and are subject to animal abuse. They are also kept in chains and used as photo-graphic props or forced to entertain the crowds with unnatu-ral, degrading and nerve-wracking circus-style performances. Most receive no medical aid and plenty of suffer from injuries and diseases that square measure left untreated.From the seas to the deserts, wild animals face the continuing threat of cru-elty and abuse.

The Undervalued WildlifeWritten By JANET D’SOUZA



E X P L O R E

When we hear about international cuisine, we think Chinese, Italian, French, Thai, etc. But in today’s world there are 195 countries and food knows no boundaries. For all food lovers with a passion to

discover international cuisines, Greek Gyros, is just the place for you.Greek Gyros is a restaurant, located in Thane that specializes in casual/comfort Greek/ Mediterranean/ Lebanese cuisine. Serv-ing both veg and non-veg, the restaurant makes some mouth-watering Greek delicacies.As you enter into the restaurant, the friendly staff immediate-ly greets you and just when you are scanning the room, the ambience gifts you the incredible aroma of Greek Coffee with wonderful music playing in the background. My suggestion to someone visiting the place for the first time will always be, the Signature Greek Coffee, an authentic black coffee served hot in traditional style. As Greek food is also known for its salads, the next thing one must try. Specially the Horiatiki, Buckwheat and Inferno which are tasty, healthy and nutritious at the same time.

Signature Gyros, is nothing less that imperative for one to try. The dish is served in either a bowl or in the form of a wrap, as per your will. Some of the other interesting dishes that one must try are...Gyros- Greek delicacy stacked on a vertical rotisserie to cut off the sides into perfectly cooked strips. It is served with hum-mus, fries, onions, tomato, tirokafteri and arugula. Sauvlaki- It is Greek fast food consisting of small pieces of meat or vegetables grilled on skewer. They are served with Pita, fries, pickled vegetables hummus and tirokafetri. It gives the real taste of grilled meat and veggies in real Greek style.Power bowls- You get power bowl in veg with grilled paneer or falafel which is served with hummus, feta, and house salad. Non-veg power bowl have options of Chicken kebab, pulled chicken, chicken streak, pulled pork, spiced pork, etc.There are other super delicious Greek dishes in the menu which one can try according to their taste and choices. The quality of food will not disappoint you at all. The ambiance of the restaurant is pleasing. One of the Greek food hub for food lovers.

Greek Gyros- Eat Big, Eat GreekE X P L O R E

Written By VARSHA MEHTA



Are You Ready To Kick Some Ball?

Written By LEENA PANDEY

Because Team India Is Readyy!

E X P L O R E

Daane Daane Pe Likha HaiKhane Wale Ka Naam

Mohammad Yassen, the owner, was popularly known as Bademiya. So when the time came to think of a name, the alias stuck and his food counter started by the

name of Bade Miya in Mumbai. In 1946, he established the first kabab counter. It was one of the best and always filled with people to eat the delicious food items. Bade miya has become a landmark and a tourist attraction of Mumbai. He started his first food counter at Apollo Bandar near Mumbai Naval Port as a late night snacks corner. Now, they serve Muglai food and has set a benchmark in serving the best Mughlai food items. Bade miya serves more than 80 food items in their menu. There are more than 40 Nonveg dishes and more than 30 Veg dishes. Every dish has unique and different way of cooking. Every dish made is true to the essence of mughlai food due to the se-

cret masala recipe bestowed upon the Yassen sons in the fam-ily. The Dum Briyani of Bademiya is a famous attraction. A few must tries include- Seekh Kebab, Chicken Lazeez and Chicken Seekh kebab rolls. There are many Veg dishes that one keeps coming back for, but Malai Kofta tops the list.Bademiya is more than just a food stall with the Royal arrange-ment enhancing the ambience. Situated in Central Area of Mumbai, such an ambience gives a Mughlai feeling of sitting and having food. The services is quick even with many to look after. The presentation of food is so lavish that it appeals not only to the taste buds but also the eyes. A place not only for non-veg lovers with the perfect ambience that one desires, clubbed with the maintenance and delivery of food is an abso-lute recommendation to get a taste of Mumbai.


S P O R T S

Are You Ready To Kick Some Ball?

Football is not a very popular sport in India, although since the past few years it has gained momentum in India. The current scenario of football in India is surely at the peak!

Earlier, cricket was only the sport being played by india but due to various initiatives taken by investors, businessmen, en-trepreneurs, stars and organizations, new football players are been emerging from every nook and corner. Indian soccer league has resulted in debut of new players from every state in India. More so ever, stars and celebrities like John Abraham are coming up with their own teams for the league who’re also getting well paid. A few enterprises in India responsible for de-veloping the young sport talent are usually aimed at just one sport. India was also the host nation of 2017 FIFA U-17 WORLD CUP, for the first time ever. The tournament was lauded as the most successful FIFA U-17 world cup, with the attendance be-ing a record 13,47,133 surpassing even China’s 1985 edition (12,30,976). Owing to this, India has also bid to host the 2019 FIFA U-20 WORLD CUP and is considering a bid for the 2023 FIFA WOMEN’S WORLD CUP.

The quality of football has drastically changed in India. Take for example the Indian National team, earlier even the foot-ball fans didn’t know who their country played against or even the names of the players. Now with ISL we know many Indian players. Since then India’s performance has been exceptional against big teams. In the recent tournament AFC challenge cup the Indian players outplayed every team and in fact won the tournament. The lack of support of the indian audienc-es prompted skipper Sunil chhetri to post a heartfelt video on twitter. It carried a simple message to the public- “please come and support us”. On the match day the stadium was fully packed with 10,000 fans cheering for him, he also made his 100 appearance for the country, the second Indian after Bhaichung Bhutia to reach such a milestone. SuniI Chhetri has scored a re-cord of 56 goals so far, he has became the fourth highest goal-scorer among the top active international players surpassing England’s player Wayne Rooney. ALL INDIAN FOOTBALL FED-ERATION (AIFF) have recommended chhetri’s name for the padma shri, the country’s fourth-highest civilian award.Indian Olympic Association decides against sending Indian football team to the Asian Games

In what is being seen as a major setback for the Indian Foot-ball Team, the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) has decided against sending them for the Asian games 2018 to be held in Jakarta and Palembang. The All India Football Federation (AIFF) has, however, stated that it is willing to send the national team

to the Asian Games on its own cost. The IOA chose not to clear Indian men’s and women’s Football Teams since they have deemed them “incompetent” to win any medals. In an official statement AIFF had said, “It’s clear the IOA lacks the vision and competence to understand that Football is a global sport played by 212 countries and that the top 5 teams in Asia play in the FIFA World Cup where the level of competi-tion is far superior to the Asian Games.” AIFF added that the “IOA’s myopic view” is in sharp contrast to that of the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports and Sports Authority of India (SAI). The Ministry and SAI have been encouraging the Indian foot-ball team for the past many years. It was also alleged by the AIFF that, “IOA was never bothered to even discuss the strategy and plans with AIFF for developing football in India.” to make a case for the Indian Football team but the decision, however, remains unchanged. AIFF general secretary Kushal Das today said that the AIFF was “disappointed and unhappy” with the decision IOA has taken. Indian Football is witnessing a steady rise since the past few years. The national rank has jumped from 173 to 97 in the FIFA rankings, qualifying us for the AFC Asian Cup 2019. The ‘Blue Tigers’ are currently ranked 14th in Asia, after a string of good performances in international matches of late. In the re-cent match Indian U-20 defeated Argentina U-20 by 2-1 even though the Indian team was 1man down. The Indian football has shown the drastic improvement and encouraged the pres-ent youth to appreciate and actively participate in the sport.

Written By RAJARSHI SHUKLA

Because Team India Is Readyy!



SACRED GAMESWritten By KRUTIKA VAISHYA

What makes web series the next big thing on the inter-net? Young audiences in the country have long com-plained about the lack of youth-oriented content on

TV. And it comes as a little surprise since the soppy Saas-Bahu dramas and reality shows still dominate the Indian television. Shows like Naagin 3 (Colors) , Kundali Bhagya (ZEE TV) , Kum-kum Bhagya (Star Plus) , Dance Deewane (Colors) , Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai (Star Plus) are few of the highest grossing in terms of TRPs. As a consequence, the youth is turning to the internet for an alternative source of entertainment. Defending the TV soaps, Ekta Kapoor says, “Certain stories are not meant for television”, implying certain shows aren’t yet fit to be showcased on the television. Perhaps to capture the runaway youth she founded an app for web series which goes by the name of ALT BALAJI, which so far has been famous for series like Romil Jugaal, Be-wafaa Sii Wafaa, Boygiri, Karle Tu Bhi Mohabbat, Dev DD, The Test Case, Bose: Dead/Alive, Dil Hi Toh Hai. Voot, Hotstar, Zee5, Netfix, Sony LIV, TVF, VB On The Web, Amazon Prime are some of the application that have jumped on the bandwagon of webseries. Among these TVF, Netflix and Hotstar are the most liked by the young population. While a majority of Bollywood, TV filmmakers and production houses are still trying to please the censor board and serve topics according to the tastes of the popular audience, online video streaming allows creative freedom to filmmakers with no censor board breathing down their necks. Netflix released its first ever Hindi web series, SACRED GAMES in 2018. It is based on Vikhram Chandra’s 2006 thriller novel of the same name. the series is directed by Vikramaditya Motwane and Aditya Kashy-

ap who produced Sacred Games under their banner Phantom Films. The novel was adapted by Varun Grover, Smita Singh and Vasant Nath. The series included a few ace celebrities like Saif Ali Khan, Radhika Apte and Nawazuddin Sidhhiqui. The series has 8 episodes, each named after a mythological story. It gained huge momentum and was released in 20 languages across 191 countries.Kashyap said it gave a real sense of India by showing diverse characters speaking in vernacular languages like Marathi , Pun-jabi and Gujarati. Not only the language, but the protagonists of the story belong to different cultures of india. Kashyap has tried to capture the essence of india through its characters and used colloquial phrases making the series relatable. Although made with the best intentions, Sacred Games was subject to backlash from conservatives for offensive content. The streaming service’s first Indian original series, has been ac-cused of “harming the reputation” of late official Rajiv Gandhi and for including “inappropriate dialogues, political attacks and even speeches which are derogatory in nature.” It came off as a warning to the directors. Even though they can change mediums and exploit their creative liberty, they’ll al-ways be under the scrutiny of people if not they do not meet with their mindsets. Kashyap has been famous for his pro-longed post production work at the courts and even though he might have escaped it this time, he couldn’t escape the public outrage. Perhaps because of working in the industry for a longer time, Ekta Kapoor has so well understood the pub-lic mindset that she’s right about indian audiences being not ready for certain content. However, this raises severe questions about our tolerance and our abilities to look beyond superfici-

E N T E R TA I N M E N T



GOLD Written By ADITI NAIR

Akshay kumar has always impressed his fans with his great movies which has a message. This time he came up with a sports drama. There is no greater pride in a sport when you see your country’s flag being hoisted

on an international stage. When the setup at the 1948 Olym-pics in London began these sentiment got amplified, where the Indian hockey team had to prove that their dominance in the sports from 1936 to 1948 wasn’t by mere chance. This film makes the sentiment stronger and the win historic because that game was played just a year later when India became a free country. Gold recreates the journey of this spirited and lesser known team that staged the British at the 1948 Olym-pics and made a statement against the English subjugation of 200 years.

The film starts in 1936, where in Berlin Olympics India made big impact in world hockey and won its third consecutive gold. The British used to manage a team called British India team. One determined Bengali junior manager of the British India team, had a willingness to form a new team for India to partici-pate at 1948 Olympics in London. This Bengali junior manag-er’s dream was to see the Indian flag furling high on British soil, which would be a moment of pride for every Indian citizen.

Akshay Kumar as the dhoti clad team manager (often reffered to a Bengali) brings in a great deal of physical as well as gag driven humour to his performance. Kunal Kapoor, as a senior

player and later a couch on Indian team in a solid performance. Vineet Kumar Singh, who once again delivers a knockout per-formance. Amit Sadh, the Vice Captain of the team and a fan-tastic as an uptight prince, who learns some valuable lesson in life. Sunny Kaushal with a heart and hot temper shows a spark of brilliance. Mouni Roy as a feisty Bengali wife, handles her brief role effortlessly.

Gold a period film that recreates an era long forgotten. Its just not a film on hockey, more than that it reminds us of the pain-ful partition and how the nation was brutally tore apart. The cinematography and the background score stand out with ex-cellent technique. The production design and costume played an integral part in depicting era. The first half of the film was slow paced and the film takes a quite a while ti establish the characters. The matches create a great amount of thrill. The editing and narration of the story was wonderfully done. The songs Chad gayi hai and Naino ne baandhi was amazingly cho-reograph.

The emotions run high when handful of Indians put their per-sonal difference aside and play for their country and make their country proud. When India won its first gold for their free nation we can see that their was Pakistani players cheering fir Indian players on the field. “GOLD” is much more than a sports drama.





NUDEWritten By RASIKA DESHPANDE

It has been noted that Marathi cinema industry is coming up with excellent films having bold ideas and inspiring content which raises questions amongst the audience about the so-

ciety. “Nude” is one such film about the challenges of being a woman in a hypocrite society and the struggle for artists. Story begins with Yamuna leaving her abusive husband after he’s caught cheating. She makes a bold move to shift to Mum-bai along with his son. She knocks at the door of her aunt for help. Her only aim to come to big city is to educate her son, Laxman. She starts job hunting. She finds out that her aunt poses as a nude model in Sir JJ School of Arts. The aunt offers her this job as well. Unable to find any other job and fulfill the dreams of educating her son, she reluctantly accepts. The stark remarks of her aunt like “I take off my clothes voluntarily and no one in that place looks through a lens of lust”, further ce-ments her decision. The background score and music is excellently done by Sau-rabh bhalerao. The scene where yamuna first time poses as nude model, kabir’s doha in Vidya Rao’s voice express halting oceans of yamuna’s emotions. Time comes when yamuna becomes comfortable posing for nude painting and also begins to accept private assignment with renowned painters and many art students. She creates a beautiful bond with one of art student(Om Bhutkar) who ex-plains to her the importance of nude model in arts and huge respect for them.The film also has a character of a renowned painter who is ex-iled from the country due to his controversial nude paintings.

Appearance of that character Malik(Naseeruddin Shah) be-comes an important part in film wherein he’s questioned about his nude paintings. He replies “ Clothes are worn on body and not on soul and I search soul in my paintings.” The film reaches a point where yamuna’s expects was her son to understand her work. But does that really happen? That’s revealed in the climax conclusion and it is appreciated because of the realist touch. Protest by rightwingers, who attack the college to de-stroy nude painting and sculptures seems a bit lame and lacks impact but dialogues by yamuna focus on her agenda “ educa-tion should not stop of my son neither art students”Bond of two ladies is a power in real world where women are often seen discouraging the other. Aunt chandra akka teaches yamuna to face the problem of life ,to face Mumbai city to face mentality of men in tough way.The nude canvas is coloured by performances of kalyanee mu-lay and chhaya kadam which takes the film to another level, they brought liveliness in character in front of audience eyes. shrikant yadav,om bhutkar, madan deodhar &others spread shine to colours.Overall all the film is perfect masterpiece by jadhav with splash-ing colours,lines strokes and masterstroke . “Beauty lies in the eyes of beholder” is one side of jadhav film and other is “vulgar-ity lies in the eyes of beholder” is presented in film,now its up to you to see “Beauty” or “Vulgarity”.Last thing, it is story of perceptions. Film is definitely worth a watch




ONENEST

What is an Open mic?A session, Place where anyone is welcome to sing, perform standup comedy, poetry and storytelling. It is an event where amateur performers or professionals come and try their material. The concept of Onenest is straightforward. Come and express yourself. If you are someone who writes on the last page of your book or diary, then this is the exact place you are looking. Onenest has Stand-up comedy open mics every Friday where a lot of new comics and old comics come and try their material. On Saturdays we have Poetry and storytelling for people who write and want to express themselves, the shows are usually in the evening starting from 8 pm onwards. We have so many participants and the audience who come in every show. We are the only venue In Navi Mumbai, for now, that is focused on live performances for standup comedy and poetry. We have participants from various age groups, starting from 18 to 70 and above. We have done 2 Music open mics as well. Our focus for it is evident. We only promote original composition may it be Music, poetry, Comedy. PLAGIARISM is not allowed It’s been only six months to Onenest and till now we have done a lot of full house shows like IS IT A JOKE? – by Sorabh Pant, Both- Manik Mahna and Urooj Ashfaq, Jokyapanti- Rehman Khan, Kahaniya- A show by Tape a tale. The founder of Onenest is Gurpreet Kaur, she is a teacher by profession, she is 22, and she teaches in ICE COL-LEGE OF HOTEL MANAGEMENT apart from teaching she is a poet too, and you can find her famous poetry VAISHYA on YouTube. Living her passion and letting others live theirs also she started Onenest. Her motive Is to create a space full of talent and to promote different types of artist. Performers, Musicians, Standup Comedians, Poets, Storytellers. Her second motive for onenest was to create a stage for the third gender. We had 5 LGBTQ members on our inauguration as special guests. A place where there is a stage for all the genders, and there is no discrimination done in any way. The Manager of Onenest Sunny Gamare, A teacher and event manager by profession also comes forward in tak-ing the motives ahead. He manages and directs all the videos made by onenest for the youtube channel. The team has around three more. Manish Naik a singer by profession, Anuj Jha photographer and a videographer, Prithvi Tulsiani a Standup comic and Vedang Joshi, a poet. Onenest invites you all as a participant and as an audience every Friday and Saturday. Come and encourage new comics, singer, poets and other artists.

- KAUSHIK SODHI

Navi Mumbai’s only venue for Comedy- Poetry- Storytelling- Music Live per-formances and Open mics.

COMING SOON

Documents

Spectator, to the team of journalism - SIES ASCN